The Arenal Volcano

After breakfast we set off for our next set of adventures. Travelling by private transfer we took the 2 1/2 drive to our next destination  the Hotel Arenal which is ten minutes outside of La Fortuna with every suite overlooking the volcano..  During our three day stay here we were very lucky to have many unobstructed views of the top of the volcano.  Apparently many come for a week or more and never see the top due to clouds.  The vegetation at the resort was lush and was proof of how wet this area can be.  We did experience a couple of intense rain showers but they only lasted for short periods.  On the way to the hotel we did stop at the roadside for our first sloth sighting which was a highlight for all.  Spent a lazy afternoon in the pool getting ready for a very busy day to come.

Bright and early the next morning we were off to zip lining.  I was nervous but having read about the company felt quite confident.  Our bus driver on the 45 minute commute was more like a wildlife guide and we had stops for sloths, toucans and monkeys before even getting to our destination.  With a total of 7 zip lines with one a half mile long through the trees and reaching speeds of 45 Kms it was exillerating.  The views were amazing and we were all pumped.

After our commute back to the hotel we all changed and called a taxi to go to town for some souvenir shopping and a quick lunch before our next adventure later in the day.

View of the volcano from our patio

First sloth sighting in the wild on our way to the hotel

Relaxing in the pool

Enjoying a tropical drink before dinner

Ready for our zip lining adventure 

Photo opportunity at the top of the zip

All the smiles hide any nerves there might have been

And Kayla is off on a run.  I think the smile says it all

Alanna going for a ride

Isaac taking off from one of the platforms 

Coming in for the landing was never graceful as instructions were that you had to spread your legs and keep leaning back. Thanks for this pic Brad

Tyler sets off on a very scenic run

Sharing a great experience 

Brad being served a traditional cup of coffee in a small restaurant in Le Fortuna

The bugs were sometimes quite large

A nice view of the Arenal Volcano from the resort

Costa Rica

On August 18th I joined Kris,Brad, Tyler, Alanna, Kayla and Isaac for our trip to Costa Rica.  This trip was replacing a trip that we had planned for Disneyworld in March of 2020 which was cancelled just days before due to Covid.  We flew out of Victoria on the red eye and unfortunately had a 12 hour lay over in Toronto due to flight changes but finally arrived at our destination where we first went to Poas Volcano which is in the central part of the country.  We stayed at a delightful family run hotel the Poas Volcano Hotel where Kris, Brad and the boys had the whole old farm house to themselves.  We spent the next day at the LaPas Waterfall Park with our very informative guide Manuel.  The park is an excellent mixture of wildlife, nature, culture and beautiful waterfalls.  We saw so much and due to Manuel’s extensive knowledge we learned a lot about his country.  For our first day it was very full and enjoyable. Back at the hotel we enjoyed an excellent meal before retiring early as we had an an early start the next morning.

View of the countryside from our room

Kris and Brad’s private house with the boys in Poas. A very unique stay

Bunches of red bananas. These are eaten by the animals but generally not by people

Parrot populations in Costa Rica are making a come back now that they have put a stop to poaching for the black market

Beautiful colourful butterflies abound throughout the country

The butterflies were very friendly and had to be coaxed off one’s arm 

White faced monkeys are one of the four monkeys that are found in the countryside 
Spider monkeys are also found throughout Costa Rica 

The waterfall gardens were lush with well maintained winding paths that made for a very pleasant introduction to the plants and trees of the country

Bright coloured odd looking frogs could be found clinging to the moist plants

A display of an old farm house with an oxen cart made for a perfect picture opportunity 

A long climb down rewarded us with some beautiful waterfalls 

Our guide had his favourite picture places and we took advantage of his foresight 

Costa Rica is also home to six different wild cats. The ones at the waterfall park were rescue animals

The name of these ones escape me but he looks so cheeky with that long tongue 

These plants with the huge leaves grow wild all over and are referred to as the poor man’s umbrella. They are also used in emergency situations to stop traffic by being put down in the middle of the road if there are no cones available.

The Fjords of Greenland

Leaving Nuuk we visited a couple of the beautiful Fjords of Greenland. There are no roads between any of the towns and villages of Greenland due to the topography and this is the reason more people own boats than cars.  Another interesting fact is that north of the Arctic Circle the only breed of dog that one is allowed to have is the Greenlandic sled dog in order to preserve the purity of the breed.

The first fjord we ventured down was the Kangerlussuatsiaq Fjord which is 75 km long and 2300 feet deep.  It is framed on both sides by towering mountains which are some of the most popular climbing spots in Greenland.  At the head of the Fjord a large glacier reaches down into the water.  We explored the glacier by zodiac and sat amongst the floating ice chunks listening to and watching the glacier calf off large pieces.  Surrounded by snow covered peaks it was magical.

All trips come to a close and we finished this one by sailing down the Kangerlussuaq Fjord to the town of the same name which has a population of 500 and boasts Greenland s International airport.  The airport was previously a US airbase during WW II.  From here we flew out on a private charter to Toronto on our way home.

The light on the mountains of Greenland at sunset was spectacular 

Travelling down towards the glacier the water was a beautiful green due to run off from the ice

A smaller glacier with pristine snow at higher elevatio

The Ocean Endeavour anchored so we could go exploring 

Getting close to the glacier in the zodiacs

Birds having a rest on the chunks of ice that have calved off of the glacier

This puts into perspective how thick the glacier is at sea level and it gets much thicker as it goes up the mountain

Even with mostly cloud cover we caught some beautiful reflections in the ice covered water

Looking back at the ship with the jagged peaks behind

The different forms that the ancient ice takes on as it has been compressed over the years was fascinating. The brown at the waters edge is also ice

Sailing up towards the airport

The route we took on our Heart of the Arctic trip with Adventure Canada 

Davis Strait and Nuuk Greenland

Davis Strait, the broadest strait in the world is at the northernmost part of the Atlantic Ocean and runs between Baffin Island and Greenland.  Our crossing took a full day plus some during which time there was plenty to do on the ship with lectures, films art classes and even meditation.  One could learn some throat singing if so inclined.  I took a water colour painting class from an Inuit artist which was really fun.  I am the first to admit that I have no painting ability but my finished product was not terrible.  The crossing was a bit rolly but nothing that bothered us though others suffered.

Our first port of call in Greenland was Nuuk.  Greenland is an island country that is part of Denmark and Nuuk is the capital of Greenland with a population of 20,000.  The only way in is by boat or plane.  One thing that really surprised us that for a city this small they had huge marinas with high quality boats. As it was explained to us by our guide the only way residents can get out of town is by boat so anyone that can afford one has one.  The town has quite a tourist draw and we visited the museum which was well set up and walked through town browsing through many of the art stores.  As it was a Sunday stores that were not designed for tourists were closed but that was not what we were there for.  Most of the residents live in apartment or condo buildings with very few single houses.  In the old part of town the colour of the house indicated what your profession is, for example black is law enforcement and red is medical.

At the beginning of the crossing the skies were clear and the seas were rolling

As the crossing progressed the seas got rougher and the fog rolled in. Icebergs were spotted in the distance but not a lot to see

My feeble attempt at watercolour but the class was fun and Nancy was entertaining and way too complimentary 

Nuuk is a port city so for the first and only time on the trip we were tied up and walked off the ship to explore the town

Beautiful setting with actual mountains in the background 

Huge marinas for all the residents boats

Beautiful sculpture at the base of town sitting on a rock in the ocean

Display of National costumes in the museum

Frame of a traditional canoe all held together by leather so it would flex. This would then be covered with seal skins

Petrified mummies that were found in the ice and eerily well preserved 

Beautiful location for a cemetery with the local traditional white crosses

Assortment of colourful single family homes, rare in this city, perched on the point in town